We are proud to announce that KLRU is one of 9 pilot stations chosen to place local content on the PBS iPad and iPhone apps. The localization process is a little clunky, so we’ve put a page together to help explain it, http://www.klru.org/mobile/app.php

Right now we have 6 episodes of Arts In Context (Caballero is forthcoming), 6 episodes of CTG (many more will be added after the transition to HD), 8 episodes of Overheard, 9 episodes of The Daytripper, and we are about to put 15 shorts from Collective.

It’s a pretty exciting project, we hope you think so too. Enjoy KLRU on the go!

This film (from the producers of MUHAMMAD: LEGACY OF A PROPHET) takes viewers on an epic journey back into one of the most captivating and important periods of world history — a centuries-long period when Muslims, Christians and Jews inhabited the same far corner of Western Europe and thrived.

KLRU is closed this morning due to inclement weather. Unfortunately we had to cancel the Matthew Dowd Overheard taping. We’re very sorry and hope to see you at another Overheard taping soon. We have some great guests in the queue!

Discover the rich landscape and mysterious species inhabiting the island of Cuba as well as the danger this diverse ecosystem faces in the midst of war and tourism on Cuba: The Accidental Eden at 7 p.m. Sunday.

When two murders share a link with their own Doctor Hobson, Lewis and Hathaway try to clear her name by unraveling the truth from a tangle of complicated events on Masterpiece Mystery at 8 p.m. Sunday.

The encounter between the New and Old World lead to the birth of an entirely new culture in the early Americas in Carl Byker’s documentary When Worlds Collide at 8 p.m. Monday.

2501 Migrants: A Journey at 9:30 p.m. Monday documents global migration and the artistic inspiration dwelling within the personal account of Alejandro Santiago, a Mexican artist returning to his hometown after a decade of exploration to find his once familiar surroundings completely abandoned in the midst of resettlement.

An update to the 1994 series Baseball, part one of Ken Burns’ two-part series The Tenth Inning at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Tuesday focuses on the beginning of a new era of America’s favorite pastime in the last decade of the 20th century with the infusion of new players, dominating stadiums, and an innovative mindset to shatter historic records and rebuild the sport after crisis.

The second half of the two-part series The Tenth Inning at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Wednesday explores the ongoing popularity and relevance of baseball within the past ten years through the examination of frenzied rivalries, restored comfort in the wake of 9/11, and the darker implications of the steroid era.

Clips of memorable episodes and behind the scenes stories of each are recollected on the Best of Texas Monthly Talks at 7 p.m. Thursday and 8:30 p.m. Friday.

The diverse essence of metropolitan Austin is captured through a view of downtown living and the concept of urban density on the Best of “Downtown” Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

In Context “Classical Guitar” at 8 p.m. Thursday features performances from the Guitar Foundation of America’s annual convention and competition, the largest gathering of the classical guitar industry in the world.

Three prolific bands defy the boundaries of Classic Rock and pulsating modern grunge with the inception of progressive supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. The ensemble features their critically acclaimed self-titled debut as they take the Austin City Limits stage at 10 p.m. Friday.

Rasta revolutionary Jimmy Cliff wows the Austin City Limits crowd as he performs his greatest hits and songs from his LP Existence and includes a surprise guest on Austin City Limits Saturday at 7 p.m.

ANTIQUES ROADSHOW at 7 p.m.
ANTIQUES ROADSHOW visits North Carolina’s Museum of the Cape Fear in Fayetteville, once the site of a U.S. arsenal seized by the Confederacy, to look at some of the weapons made in North Carolina during the Civil War. Highlights include an archive of items related to Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1966 visit to St. Mark’s AME Zion Church in Durham; a circa 1800 heirloom Virginia-made table, purported to have ties to Thomas Jefferson; and a pair of circa 1725 chairs, made by New England furniture maker John Gaines, whose value – much diminished because the pieces are refinished – is estimated to be $30,000 to $50,000

AMERICAN EXPERIENCE: INFLUENZA 1918 at 8 p.m.
As the nation mobilized for war in the spring of 1918, ailing Private Albert Gitchell reported to an army hospital in Kansas. He was diagnosed with influenza, a disease about which doctors knew little. Before the year was out, America would be ravaged by a flu epidemic that killed 600,000 people — more than died in all the wars of this century combined — before disappearing as mysteriously as it began.

BENJAMIN LATROBE: AMERICA’S FIRST ARCHITECT at 9 p.m.
Noted architecture critic Paul Goldberger hosts this documentary biography of Benjamin Latrobe, the creator of the first uniquely “American” architecture. Latrobe’s tumultuous life was a series of creative triumphs, personal tragedies and constant re-invention. The film features computer-generated animation, interviews with architects and historians and location shooting as Goldberger explores Latrobe’s life, from his early years in England to his immigration to the young republic and his work on such iconic buildings as the U.S. Capitol, the White House and the Baltimore Basilica.

WASHINGTON NATIONAL CATHEDRAL: A NEW CENTURY, A NEW CALLING at 10 p.m.
This documentary film explores the history and contemporary life of America’s great gothic masterpiece and “House of Prayer for All People.” It was conceived by George Washington’s own architect to sit atop the highest hill in the nation’s capital as a moral reminder to civic leaders. Today, as the Cathedral marks its 100th anniversary, it has also become a spiritual crossroads, a center for prayer and dynamic worship for the most religiously diverse nation on earth.

Did you hear the one about PBS airing a comedy series? It’s no joke, but it is funny. Tonight, KLRU will present the first episode in the series MAKE ’EM LAUGH: The Funny Business of America, (http://www.pbs.org/wnet/makeemlaugh/) a six-hour comedy epic showcasing the most hilarious men, women, and moments in American entertainment and why they made us laugh. Hosted by Billy Crystal, the documentary series explores the currents of American comedy throughout a century of social and political change, illuminating how comedy has tackled and poked fun at our political system, race relations, gender issues, and the prevailing American standards and taboos in everyday life.

Each one-hour episode focuses on a distinct genre of American comedy – from the most ingenious physical schtick, to those fast-talking wiseguys, to the most incisive satire and parody – re-acquainting viewers with some of their favorite classics. Billy Crystal will introduce each episode and Amy Sedaris (Strangers With Candy) will narrate throughout.

I have worked for KLRU for nearly two years and certain things remind me why I love being a part of the station. The most recent is the KLRU programming department deciding to re-air Frontline’s recent episode “The Choice” the night before the election. The episode takes a closer look at the unique stories of Barack Obama’s and John McCain’s histories and eventual roads (although one road will be stopped short) to the white house in the most comprehensive and unbiased presentation of the subject I’ve seen.

With an even handed approach, Frontline re-introduced me to two men I thought I knew very well, since they’ve spent the last year or so in the national spot light. I’ve heard the “personal story” segments of each candidate’s stump speeches, but this program digs deeper – something that co-writer, co-producer, and UT professor, Paul Stekler has shown a talent for in his many projects dealing with Texas politics. Now on a national level, he has worked with a team to bring to light many details the candidates choose to leave out of the speeches, and most of the media chooses not to cover.more →